


Questioning

by mariuspunmercy



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Innuendo, LGBTQ Themes, Oblivious Rapunzel, One-Sided Attraction, Post-Betrayal, Unrequited Crush, not spoiler free, there's literally one tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-15
Updated: 2019-10-15
Packaged: 2020-12-16 19:27:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21041504
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mariuspunmercy/pseuds/mariuspunmercy
Summary: Someone was going to ask where Cass was eventually.





	Questioning

**Author's Note:**

> ⚠️ Varian spoilers from season 3 and also takes place almost immediately after No Time Like The Past ⚠️

"Hey, Princess…"

Rapunzel turned her head up from where the duo was sorting through Cass's things. She trusted Varian just in case there were any more magical items she should know about. 

"What's up?" Maybe he found some sort of painting and wanted to know its back story. It'd be kinda fun to recall any positive memories of her. 

"Uh, I don't know if I should asking this but…" The alchemist scratched the back of his neck. "What  _ happened _ to Cassie? I noticed she wasn't with you guys when you got back, and now we're going through her things as if she's coming back but the entire kingdom doesn't even know where she's  _ at  _ and uh… I'm just curious."

Rapunzel sighed. She knew that eventually, against all odds, the people would start demanding their beloved lady in waiting whereabouts. She should've guessed the smartest person in Corona would ask first. 

She swallowed. She definitely wasn't ready to talk about this to a fifteen year old kid. She put down the box she had in her hand full of old fabric and sewing material to face Varian. 

"Well…" How do you explain this to a child? How do you explain the pure, unadulterated rage and hurt from your best friend betraying you? The same person you spent every second of every day for an entire year? What is there to explain? 

Then she remembered that he already knew that feeling, and it's her fault. 

"Well, we followed the black rocks all the way to something called the Dark Kingdom. At this kingdom, it was very important that I grab something called the Moonstone. It was me fulfilling my destiny…" She trailed off when she noticed how intently he was watching her. 

Varian wanted to know what had happened to Cassandra. He  _ deserved  _ to know. He worked hard to redeem himself after everything, and besides forgiveness, this is the only other thing he's asked for since they returned. 

"Cass grabbed the stone that was meant for me…" Rapunzel sighed, holding her breath. "She betrayed us, Varian…"

He took a second to process that. He inhaled, but seemed like he had no plan to let out that breath. "What exactly do you  _ mean?" _

She grabbed her wrist to stop from shaking. "She took the Moonstone for herself. Her mother is apparently Mother Gothel so… that just really placed a wedge between us."

Varian stayed silent for a beat before saying, "How could she do that? Her most valuable possession was your trust.. She loved y- I mean, she was your best friend! That's…"

Even she couldn't believe it. It's been weeks and every mention of the betrayal has her body shaking with some kind of unknown emotion. Eugene had called it her anxiety, but she called it her failure coming back to haunt her. 

"I know, Varian. Believe me, I know."

"But just.." He scratched at his head. "How much was she talking with Eugene before everything went down? Like would they still argue?"

She thought about it for a moment. "I noticed her picking fights with him more often. Nothing super serious and stuff. Just their normal bickering, but it did happen more often."

How long had Cass really been planning to take the Moonstone? After her hand got burned? They had reconciled after that. Or maybe not as much as she thought, who knows. After the house of yesterday's tomorrows? Maybe. 

Possibly from the very beginning. 

Varian stared at her as if she'd grown a third head. "I seriously can't believe it. She… She has disobeyed the law for you and almost got sent to who knows where by her dad that one time. It's just so  _ weird."  _

He probably didn't want her to hear this next part, so that had to be why he whispered, "Especially after everything she's told me."

That statement was clearly not meant for her to hear, so she didn't comment on it. She simply picked at a sewing needle inside of the box in front of her. 

"What good things can you say about her?" He smiled, tapping his fingers against a glass box. "I mean, spending a year together couldn't have been all bad, right?"

So she thought. 

Rapunzel giggled as baby Cassandra popped in her mind immediately. "So she talked about how she liked tops at this one place, right? She saw a top she used to have as a kid, and it turned her, Lance, and Shorty into babies!"

He raised an eyebrow. "She said she likes tops?"

"Yeah…?"

"Nevermind. What else?"

"I got totally whammied by this magic wand because she accidentally wished I forgot everything, and I actually did! I thought I was back in the tower, and she was the one stuck with a fresh out the tower Rapunzel."

It was a nice breath of fresh air to talk about the good parts of their journey to the Dark Kingdom. But the good eventually turned into the bad, and it's a part of her that's never going to go away, no matter how much Eugene tries to convince her to let go of Cass. 

"Although, I think the best one was when we drank this magical tea that turned us into birds." Rapunzel smiled fondly as she remembered how that had gone. "When Cass thought I was permanently a bird, she cried while holding the bird form of me. It was amazing."

A part of Rapunzel wonders if the whole bird incident had happened after Cass decided she would take the Moonstone, if the girl would've even attempted to transform her back into a human. To transform any of them, honestly. 

"She held your trust so close to her heart." Varian crouched in front of her, smiling up at her with reassurance. "She did so much for you, and the only thing she asked of you was for you to trust her. Never a thank you."

"I know it's hard to accept…" She put a hand on his shoulder. "But this is our new reality,  _ without  _ Cass now. As much as we all hate it and want her back, we're going to learn eventually how to move on without her in our lives."

It's the most painful truth she's had to face. 

Her lady in waiting who's seen her at her best and at her worst. What is she supposed to do when the person she always thought she'd have in her circle is the person who despises her more than anything? 

"Has anyone told her dad yet?"

Rapunzel nodded. It had been one of the first things they did when they got back. She almost cried and she wanted to kick and scream, but she held her brave composure in respect for the dad who had lost his child. 

"I just don't understand," Varian shook his head. "I mean, besides Gothel, what other motivation does she have?"

Eugene took that moment to pop his head in the doorway. "Hey, blondie. Lance wanted me to fetch you two since dinner is ready."

Varian got a look of understanding as he glanced at Eugene and said under his breath,  _ "Oh,  _ that's why."

Rapunzel knew that was another statement not meant for her to hear, so she didn't question it. 

She didn't need to. 

**Author's Note:**

> Look, I love New Dream so much. 
> 
> But... I really wanted to write a pinning Cass and oblivious Rapunzel because literally why not. I'm the author I can do a n y t h i n g
> 
> Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :')


End file.
